Accordion knee support



Jan. 5, 1954 w, KOPA ACCORDION KNEE SUPPORT Filed Dec. 11, 1952 INVENTOR.

Wa BYM- a Patented Jan. 5, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE The present invention relates generally to accordions, and more specifically to a new and improved attachment for supporting an accordion from beneath on the players knee or thigh while playing. This attachment is an improvement over the device disclosed by my co-pending patent application Serial N 0. 130,941, filed December 3, 1949.

One object of the present invention is the provision of an attachment of the character described which can be secured easily to the keyboard of an accordion and which will support the accordion from beneath, so that the accordion keyboard is always in the same position and does not follow the movements of the bellows, thus greatly facilitating the playing and the selection of the proper keys on the keyboard.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of an attachment of the character described which consists of a collapsible knee engaging member which prevents any unwanted vertical movements of the key board relative to a players body, which can be adjusted easily to fit the size and habits of a player, and which reduces considerably the tension of the shoulder straps, thus making the playing less tiresome than if the accordion is supported by shoulder straps only, and which can be partially collapsed, so that it will not interfere with the inserting of the accordion, to which it is attached, into an ordinary case in which the accordion is stored while not in use.

Still another object of the present invention is the provision of an attachment of the character described which is light in weight, simple in construction, and inexpensive to manufacture, but which is also sturdy, durable, of a pleasing outer appearance, and well adapted for the purpose for which it is intended.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claim, it being understood that changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawing a preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawing:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of my invention showing the manner in which it engages the leg of an accordion player;

Fig. 2 is a. top plan view of the knee support alone;

Fig. 3 is a side view of the knee support;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional View on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a fractional side view of an attaching member showing modified means for attaching the device to a keyboard;

Fig. 7 is a fractional side view of Fig. 6 showing another modification of said attaching means;

Fig. 8 is a detailed plan view of a plate used for the modification of Fig. 7; and

Fig. 9 is a sectional view on the line 99 of Fig. 8.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawing the numeral 2 denotes a knee support constructed according to my invention having curved knee engaging members 4 and 6, which are hinged to each other by means of sleeve members 8 or the like. Each member 4 and 6 has a substantially V-shaped curved portion and an end portion connecting to each other the outer extremities of the branches of the V-shaped portion. Said end portion has a U-shaped center section In, which extends upwardly when the device is placed upon a persons thigh in the manner shown in Fig. 1. In the position shown in Fig. 1 the sections In of the members 4 and 6 rest one against the other so as to limit the movement thereof in the sleeve members 8 in such a manner that both members 4 and 6 form a continuous arch adapted for encompassing a portion of a persons thigh.

The member 4 is provided with cross portions l2 which terminate at a lug portion l4 that is provided with a longitudinal perforation (Fig. 4) A wedge-shaped disk I 6 rests with one side upon the lug portion I 4, and a plug member l8 rests upon the other side of the disk IS. The cross portions I! are upwardly inclining extended from the member 4, so that the lug portion I4 is raised beyond the outer periphery of the member 4, and a nut 20 resting against the lower side of the lug portion I4 is located above the inner periphery of the member 4, as may be seen in Fig. 4. A substantially Z-shaped arm 22 has at one end a lug portion 24, which is provided with a longitudinal perforations into which is shiftably extended a reduced lower portion of the member I8. An upright bolt 26, whose lower portion is threaded and screwed into the nut 20, is pivoted to the member l8 by means of a. cross-pin 28.

The latter extends crosswise through the reduced lower portion of the member l8 as well as through the upper end portion of the bolt 26, which is extended into a bore in the member IS. A handle 32 preferably is pivotally secured to the nut 20 for facilitating the turning of the same. Thus the position of the arm 22 relative to the member 4 can be adjusted easily and quickly, angularly as well as laterally. The adjustment is carried out by first loosening the nut 28 and then turning the disk It around the bolt 26, which extends therethrough as well as through the lug portion I4, and by shifting the portion M of the member 4 relative to the bolt 26 and the portion 24 of the arm 22 relative to the mem- 'ber l8. By turning the disk I6 an angular adjustment is attained, and by the aforementioned shifting a lateral adjustment is attained. After the adjustments have been completed the various parts can be retained in their respective adjusted positions by tightening the nut 20. The upper portion of the member 22 has a perforated section 34 adapted for extending therethrough screws 36 by means of which the member 22 can be secured to the keyboard of an accordion (Fig. 3). The outer extremity 38 of the member 22 extends outwardly from the keyboard so, if the member 22 has been secured thereto, and is adapted for having fastened to it the end portion of a strap or the like, as is indicated in Fig. 1.

The member 22 preferably is provided with a straight main portion, which allows to attach the member 22 upwardly adjustably to the keyboard 40 according to the modifications of Fig. 6 and Figs. 7 to 9. According to the modification of U Fig. 6 a plate 42 having a pair of parallel flangeshaped edge portions 44 is placed upon said main portion of the member 22 and is secured to the keyboard M9 by means of screws 46 extending through the plate 42 as well as through the member 22, which preferably is made of wire material. Thereby the flange-shaped edge portions 44 extend over the main portion of the member 22, so that the latter can be shifted longitudinally along the plate 44 when the screws 40 have been loosened somewhat for adjustment purposes.

According to the modification of Figs. 7, 8 and 9, a first plate 158 is preferably inserted into an excavation in the keyboard 40, so that it is flush therewith (Fig. '7), and is secured thereto by means of screws 50, which are extended through countersunk holes in the plate 48. The latter is provided with a longitudinal slot 54, and the portions of the plate 48 which are adjacent the longitudinal edges of the slot 54 are equally reduced in thickness at one side of the plate 48 while the portions 58 of the plate 48 adjacent the end portions of the slot 54 are inclined from the other side of the plate 48 toward the ends of the slot 54. A bolt 65, which has a substantially fiat, rectangular head 62 is extended through the slot 54 and is provided with a wingnut 64. The

bolt 60 also is extended through the member 22 and through a second plate 65, which is shaped substantially like the plate 42 of the modification of Fig. 6. If the head 62 is .in the position shown inFig. 8 its end portions engage the reduced portions 55 of the plate 38, which face the keyboard 40, so that the bolt =80 cannot be removed from the plate 43. With the bolt 9% in this position and the nut 64 loosened the position of the member 22 can be adjusted by shifting it relative to the parts 68, 48 and 5%. After adjustment the member 22 can be retained-in the adjusted position by tightening the nut 64. .If the bolt '60 is turned ninety degrees around its longitudinal axis, the head 62 can pass freely through the slot '54, so that the entire device 2 can be removed from the keyboard 40, and can be reattached thereto by the simple manipulation of the bolt 60 as referred to hereinbefore.

The member 6 can be moved on the sleeve members 8 in a counterclockwise direction, so that it folds upon the lower side of the member 4, for reducing the size of the device when not in use. The lower side of the members 4 and 6 can be provided with any suitable padding (not shown).

Since certain changes may be made in the above article and different embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and notin a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which as a matter of language might be said to fall therebetween.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. An accordion knee support comprising an arcuated member adapted to encompass a portion of a persons thigh near the knee having an elevated fiat portion provided with a perforation, an arm member adapted to have one of its ends secured to the keyboard of an accordion being adjustably attached to said flat portion, and means for extending said arm memher at varicus angular positions from said flat portion being interposed between the latter and the arm member.

2. An accordion knee support comprising an arcuated member adapted to encompass a portion of a persons thigh near the knee having an elevated fiat portion, an arm member adapted to have one of its ends secure-d to the keyboard of an accordion as well as to a shoulder strap of the accordion and having its other end portion shiftably attached to the fiat portion of said arcuated member, and means for extending said arm member at various angular positions from said fiat portion being interposed between the latter and the arm member.

3. A device of the character described comprising a first arcuated member adapted to encompass a portion of a persons thigh near the knee, a second arcuated member adapted to encompass a portion of a persons thigh near the knee having an elevated fiat portion provided with a longitudinal perforation, and being hinged to said first arcuated member, a Z-shaped arm member having a slot in its lower portion and being with its upper portion adjustably secured to the keyboard or an accordion, a plug member having a head portion resting upon the lower portion of said arm member and having a hollow portion extending into the slot of the knee, a second arcuated member adapted to encompass a portion of a persons thigh near the knee having an elevated flat portion provided with a longitudinal perforation and being hinged to said first arcuated member, a Z-shaped arm member having a main portion and end portions which are angularly disposed to said main portion and the lower one of said end portions having a longitudinal slot, a plug member having a head portion resting upon the lower portion of said arm member and having a hollow portion extending into the slot of the lower portion of said arm member, a bolt tiltably secured to said hollow portion, a wedge-shaped disk member through which said bolt is extended being interposed between the lower portion of said arm member and the flat portion of said second arcuated member, and a plate shiftably fastened to the main portion of said arm member being adapted to be secured to the keyboard of an accordion.

5. A device of the character described comprising a first arcuated member adapted to encompass a portion of a persons thigh near the knee, a second arcuate member adapted to encompass a portion of a persons thigh near the knee having an elevated fiat portion provided with a longitudinal perforation and being hinged to said first arcuated member, a Z-shaped arm member having a main portion and end portions which are angularly disposed to said main portion and the lower one of said end portions having a longitudinal slot, a plug member having a head portion resting upon the lower portion of said arm member and having a hollow portion extending into the slot of the lower portion of said arm member, a bolt tiltably secured to said hollow portion, a wedgeshaped disk member through which said bolt is extended being interposed between the lower portion of said arm member and the fiat portion of said second arcuated member, a first plate adapted to be secured to the keyboard of an accordion having a rectangular slot and being reduced in thickness adjacent the longitudinal edges of said slot, a bolt having a threaded shaft and a rectangular head which is so dimensioned that in a first position it can be extended through said slot and that in a second position after having been turned ninety degrees the end portions of the head engage the reduced portions of the first plate adjacent the longitudinal edges of the slot, a second plate placed upon the main portion of said Z-shaped arm member and having an aperture through which extends said bolt, and a nut screwed upon said bolt for securing said plate to said arm member.

WALTER KOPA.

No references cited. 

